The following should not be included in the word count: abstract/executive summary; indented quotations (of more than 50 words); tables; figures; diagrams; footnotes/endnotes used for reference purposes and kept within reasonable limits; bibliography; and appendices.
The dissertation must be typed or word-processed and prepared in double spaced, Arial 12pt typescript on A4 paper, with margins of approximately 4cms left and 2.4cms on the right. The abstract and bibliography should be single spaced.
Please make special attention to tenses (past, present, future) and be careful not to mix them within chapters. Methodology and results, for example, include what has been done/found and so should be in the past tense.
Illustrative items such as tables and diagrams etc. should be produced and reduced to appropriately fit with the A4 page unless this would seriously detract from their illustrative value; particularly where outputs from the internship include design elements. They should be inserted as near as possible to the main portion of the text referring to them and should be titled and numbered sequentially throughout the report for ease of reference.
Page numbering up to the abstract/executive summary should be by small Roman numerals, (i, ii, iii, iv, etc.) and the main body of the text plus appendices should be numbered consecutively throughout in Arabic numerals. The general style of layout should be similar to that in academic works and journals, except where it is appropriate to have numbered paragraphs and greater use of headings, sub-headings, and other appropriate devices for emphasis, etc. (underlining/italics, etc.).
Each chapter should contain an introduction, the main body of arguments and a conclusion. You should attempt to anchor each chapter into the body of the text so that its relevance to the whole dissertation report is clear to the reader. It is essential that your report includes the key criteria of internship assessment as shown in the internship marking grid.
A standard dissertation takes the following format that you may wish to adapt depending upon which route you are taking. This is something you can discuss with your supervisor.
Abstract
The aim of this is to give the reader an overview of the work contained in the dissertation. It should be no longer than one page of A4, single spaced and should refer to the aims and objectives, the methods of investigation, the main findings and the conclusions reached. It is NOT a description of you contents page.
Acknowledgements
You should refer to those people who have assisted you in your research. For example, your supervisor, advisors, and those who completed questionnaires and interviews etc. Please ensure you spell names correctly and ensure that you conform with ethical issues (do not name any individuals or companies who have provided you with data or personal information)
Contents Page
Your contents page should list the sections and subsections of your dissertation followed by references and then appendices. You should provide the title of each appendix and it is common practice to number the pages in the appendix A1, A2, A3 etc. Pages in the contents table are normally numbered in small case Roman numerals.
List of Table and Figures
List all, figures, tables and diagrams by number, title, and page number
List of abbreviations
Abbreviations should be listed. In the text, the abbreviation should only be used after its first mention, which should be written in full.
Introduction
This should set the scene and give the reader a complete overview of what you intend to do. It should include a general introduction, a
rationale for doing the research, which is based on an organisation issue, an aim and three to four supporting objectives and/or hypotheses, the proposed methodology, limiting and delimiting factors and an outline of the organisation of the study.
Literature Review
A literature review is “an interpretation and synthesis of published work” Merriam, 1986, Case Study Research in Education) and it is not simply an extended essay. As such your literature review should involve the following processes:
Searching for sources
– Searching for references is a standard part of your dissertation and should be done as early as possible. Search tools are available and include:
– internet search engines such as Business Source Premier (EBSCO), Emerald, Google other databases
– bibliographic databases such as the Web of Science and OCLC (check with ISD through the University web site and the information desk in Clifford Whitworth).
– The Salford library catalogue and those of other local universities (again see ISD pages on the University web site).
Your most accessible sources are those in print form in the library and those electronic journals to which Salford subscribes. Electronic journals are an exciting innovation, and as the situation is very fluid, you need to keep up to date with exactly what is available. Clifford Whitworth information desk has up to date information on what is available and how to access it (e.g., you may need user ids and passwords).
Not all the items you find in your search will be available to you directly, and hence the earlier the search is started the better. For those items not available at Salford or on the internet, you may wish to use the inter-library loan service. The time taken for the loans to arrive varies from forty-eight hours for loans from local libraries to up to three months for items requiring a search in the British library. The average time is probably about ten days, but you should enquire at the time you make the request. If the item is available at another local university, it may be easier to reference it there (though you will not be able to borrow it directly).
Quality of information
Information overload has become a familiar term recently, but it is a concept that is likely to be clear to you after your search. Your problem may not be finding the information but selecting what you should use (particularly with Internet searches). Internet sources are of very variable quality, you need to be particularly critical in your use of these sources. It is often worth asking yourself: who supplied this information and why did they supply it? An evaluation of, say, Enterprise Resource Management software from a peer-reviewed journal may carry more weight than one offered by the leading supplier of that type of software.
Use of information
At this level, it is essential that you observe scholarly conventions for the attribution of the work of others. Please read the notes on plagiarism in your student handbook. References are those sources (written and unwritten) which were consulted during your research, and which are referred to in your text. During the literature search of your dissertation topic, you will find published material (books, book chapters, scientific articles, magazine articles, press articles, commercial reports, etc.). It is essential to refer to your source when quoting actual text, when referring to numerical data, and when using a diagram or figure found in the literature. Figures (pictures, diagrams, models, maps, etc) and tables (numerical data usually) should be clearly labelled and of a sufficient size to be readable. The source of each map, picture, diagram, or statistical table should be clearly acknowledged. Subsequently, each figure or table should have:
· a number (so that you can refer to it as an explanation or illustration of your argument in the main text – reciprocally, all figures and tables should be referred to and used in the text).
· title.
· the source, if the figure or table has been found in a book, article, or report (if it is a result of your own work, it does not need a source).
In the interest of accuracy and to avoid having to waste time checking sources at the last minute, it is very strongly recommended you take careful notes when material is being collected during your investigation, when using primary sources (people you interview for instance) or secondary sources (books you read, i.e., work done by someone else). Be careful to record accurately name of author, title of work, page numbers, date, publisher, etc. or name of the person interviewed, job title, date, company, location, etc. and indicate clearly in your notes from published work what is copied exactly and what is a précis (a summary in your own words).
Where original sources have been studied only in a reprint edition or published collection of readings, this secondary source should be documented as well as the original publication. Incidentally, direct, and indirect quotations (both of which should be referenced to their original sources) should be used only sparingly – the object of the dissertation is to establish the student’s own personal understanding and contribution in the area of study. Similarly, an outline style or the excessive use of short paragraphs should be avoided in the dissertation; in the dissertation each topic should be as rigorously and deeply discussed as practicable, which normally requires longer paragraphs. This should culminate in a chosen theory or theories with an outline expressing how these are to be tested – the design of this is reported in the next section.
Finally, do not cite your lecture notes, it is not appropriate!
Methodology
You must give reasoned arguments for your choice of research methodology, including any alternate methods that have been deemed less suitable. Selections of your sample should be discussed along with details of how you implemented your methodology (how? where? when? who? why?) information on pilot studies should be included, together with details of any changes made as a result. You must discuss and justify how the field work was undertaken, what happened, and the methods used to analyse data. Reliability and validity issues should be discussed including the steps you have taken to ensure your findings may be relied on by others as accurate and trustworthy. The main emphasis of this chapter is on justifying what you have done and the process you have applied in data collection and analysis.
Results and Discussion
The results should be presented in a logical manner using tables and figures as necessary. You should discuss the meaning of the results as you present them. Remember to relate your results back to your aim and objectives and literature review. This section should not be just a description of your results but should include a discussion and evaluation of the findings you have made.
Conclusions and Recommendations
Your conclusions are a summary of your overall findings and should relate to your original aim, objectives, and hypotheses. The conclusions should be based on your results and discussions section but should NOT be a regurgitation of this section. The key parts of the literature must be revisited in this section and where appropriate your conclusions should assess implications of your work.
Your recommendations should be applicable and should be based on your conclusions chapter. Where appropriate, your recommendations should include aims, implementation strategies, resource costs and resource benefits. Whether the recommendations include actions to change or do something differently or to maintain or strengthen the existing approach, practice, or strategies, they are implementable. It is advisable that you prioritise the recommendations that are likely to achieve the greatest effect and, in doing so, consider the reality of your proposals in terms of potential implementation difficulties, the benefits that will accrue from the implementation and the cost implications. Your action plan will normally be an appendix, which contains, if possible, timescales, responsibilities, and costs.
Reference List
Throughout your dissertation you will be referring to the work of others. You must provide a list of those sources which you use and refer to in the dissertation. All sources you use must be referenced and must be included in this list. Each source in the list must in a form that is traceable by the reader—thus you need to include the authors’ names, the year, the title of the source, etc. The school insists that you use the Harvard system. Failure to acknowledge and reference correctly may lead to accusations of plagiarism and if proved, you will be subjected to the disciplinary process of the university. You can read more about good academic conduct in the academic handbook
Appendices
Appendices are not marked and hence should not be included in the word count. They should include only relevant information to aid in the understanding of the text, e.g., questionnaires, interview questions, letters, and responses to and from third parties, relevant raw data, etc.
There is no need to present each complete questionnaire although it is extremely important
that this is saved and as it may be required for inspection. This also applies to taped
transcripts of any interviews.